Pensioners: Poverty

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the number of pensioners living in poverty in Dartford constituency in each of the last five years.

Steve Webb: The most commonly used measure of poverty relates to those with incomes below 60% of contemporary median income, after housing costs.
	Estimates of poverty, published in the households below average income series, only allow a breakdown of the overall numbers in poverty at Government Office Region level. Therefore, information is available for the South East of England Government Office Region, but not available for the constituency of Dartford.
	Three-year averages are used to report regional statistics as single-year estimates are subject to volatility. Numbers of pensioners are quoted to the nearest 100,000 and percentages are quoted to the nearest whole percentage point.
	The following table shows the number and percentage of pensioners living in households in the South East of England with incomes below 60% of contemporary median income, after housing costs, for time periods that cover the last five years.
	
		
			  Three year period  Number of pensioners (million)  Percentage of pensioners 
			 2004-05 to 2006-07 0.2 16 
			 2005-06 to 2007-08 0.2 16 
			 2006-07 to 2008-09 0.2 16 
			  Notes: 1. These statistics are based on households below average income (HBAI) data sourced from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). This uses disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 2. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 3. The reference period for households below average income figures are single financial years. Three survey years have been combined as regional single year estimates are subject to volatility. 4. Numbers of people in low-income households have been rounded to the nearest 100,000, while proportions have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. 5. Disposable incomes have been used to answer the question. This includes earnings from employment and self-employment, state support, income from occupational and private pensions, investment income and other sources. Income tax, payments, national insurance contributions, council tax/domestic rates and some other payments are deducted from incomes. 6. The household level poverty threshold is defined as the 60% of median equivalised disposable household income.

Pensions

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress he has made on proposals for a single flat-rate pension.

Steve Webb: The Government are currently looking at options for simplifying the state pension system-no decisions have yet been made.

Remploy: Voluntary Redundancy

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees of Remploy took voluntary redundancy in the last 10 years.

Maria Miller: The number of people who have taken voluntary redundancy in the last 10 full financial years is contained in the following table:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2000-01 211 
			 2001-02 14 
			 2002-03 33 
			 2003-04 11 
			 2004-05 7 
			 2005-06 4 
			 2006-07 3 
			 2007-08 1,346 
			 2008-09 452 
			 2009-10 1 
			  Source:  Remploy.

Social Security Benefits

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of  (a) men and  (b) women aged (i) 60, (ii) 61, (iii) 62, (iv) 63, (v) 64 and (vi) 65 years are in receipt of (A) guarantee credit, (B) housing benefit and (C) council tax benefit.

Steve Webb: In response to part (A), the gender and age caseloads of pension credit (guarantee credit) are as follows:
	
		
			  Table 1: Claimants of pension credit (guarantee credit) aged 60-65 in GB-May 2010 
			  Number of claimants 
			   All  Males  Females 
			 All aged 60-65 499,280 274,410 224,870 
			 60 64,950 34,780 30,170 
			 61 82,970 46,160 36,810 
			 62 92,500 52,420 40,080 
			 63 102,020 58,210 43,820 
			 64 85,140 48,520 36,620 
			 65 71,700 34,320 37,380 
			  Notes:  1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest ten; figures may not sum to totals due to rounding.  2. Figures include those in receipt of savings credit alongside guarantee credit.  3. Figures are for claimants only and exclude partners of recipients.  4. Populations of benefit units (households) by age are not available, and so proportions cannot be provided.  5. The age condition for eligibility for pension credit has increased alongside state pension age for females since April 2010 as part of the Equalisation of Pension Age.   Source:  DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100% data. 
		
	
	In response to parts (B) and (C), the gender and age caseloads of housing benefit and council tax benefit are as follows:
	
		
			  Table 2: Single claimants of housing benefit in GB-November 2010 
			   Female (single)  Male (single) 
			 All 2,436,560 1,369,060 
			 60 24,350 22,370 
			 61 25,840 23,130 
			 62 27,240 24,290 
			 63 29,880 26,380 
			 64 27,300 23,490 
			 65 24,700 20,320 
			  Source:  Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE). 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Couple claimants of housing benefit in GB-November 2010 
			   Number 
			 All 982,720 
			 60-64 80,210 
			  Source:  Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE). 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 4: Single claimants of council tax benefit in GB-November 2010 
			   Female (single)  Male (single) 
			 All 2,925,090 1,414,750 
			 60 30,690 24,590 
			 61 33,670 26,300 
			 62 36,380 28,230 
			 63 41,000 31,740 
			 64 38,340 28,620 
			 65 35,730 24,210 
			  Source:  Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE). 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 5: Couple claimants of council tax benefit in GB-November 2010 
			   Number 
			 All 1,442,060 
			 60-64 146,910 
			  Notes:  1. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple.  2. The figures have been rounded to the nearest ten. Totals may not sum due to rounding. Proportions are rounded to one decimal place.  3. Housing benefit figures exclude any extended payment cases, An extended payment is a payment that may be received for a further four weeks when they start working full time, work more hours or earn more money.  4. Age groups are based on the age on the count date (second Thursday in the month). Age breakdowns are given for single recipients by single year of age. Age bands for couples are based on the age of the oldest person. Single year of age is not readily available.  5. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data is available monthly from November 2008, and November 2010 is the most recent available.  6. Housing benefit and council tax benefit are both household benefits. Populations of households by age are not available, and therefore proportions cannot be calculated.   Source:  Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE).

Social Security Benefits: Fraud

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cases of suspected fraud were reported to the National Benefit Fraud hotline in 2009-10; how many such cases  (a) were referred to the Fraud Investigation Service and  (b) resulted in a (i) prosecution and (ii) conviction with a custodial sentence.

Chris Grayling: Every call to the National Benefit Fraud Hotline is examined by the Department. Where there is enough evidence to indicate potential benefit fraud the case is passed to either the Fraud Investigation Service for further investigation or to our customer compliance teams in Jobcentre Plus who will scrutinise the relevant benefit claim and make adjustments to entitlements as necessary.
	In 2009-10, 253,708 cases of suspected benefit fraud were reported to the National Benefit Fraud Hotline of which 46,258 were referred to the Fraud Investigation Service for further action.
	Information on the number of these reported fraud cases referred from the National Benefit Fraud Hotline that were prosecuted and convicted with a custodial sentence is not available. However, in 2009-10 8,198 cases were prosecuted for fraud against DWP benefits of which 7,040 received a criminal conviction. A total of 1,340 of these convictions resulted in a custodial sentence of which 929 were suspended.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Sandra Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average fee paid to ATOS for carrying out a work capability assessment was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Chris Grayling: Information relating to the average fee paid to Atos Healthcare for carrying out a work capability assessment is commercially sensitive and release of this information would prejudice the interests of Atos Healthcare and the Department's future dealings with Atos Healthcare or other service providers.

State Retirement Pensions

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the implementation of proposals to increase the state pension age on the average monetary value of  (a) free prescriptions,  (b) free bus travel and  (c) winter fuel payments for a (i) woman and (ii) man currently aged 56 years over their lifetime.

Steve Webb: Under proposals current before Parliament, men and women aged 56 in 2011 will reach state pension age in 2021 rather than in 2020 as under current legislation. The age at which pensioner benefits can be received is already set to increase in line with the female state pension age. The information requested is not available. Such information as is available is as follows:
	 (a) The Department of Health does not collect the information requested on prescription charge exemptions.
	 (b) The Department for Transport does not hold information on the monetary value of free bus travel to eligible people over their lifetime. The changes in state pension age impact on the cost of providing the England-wide off-peak bus travel concession and the overall monetary effect is set out on page 15 of the Explanatory Memorandum to The Travel Concessions (Eligibility) England Order 2010 No. 459 which can be found at the following link:
	http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2010/459/pdfs/uksiem_20100459_en.pdf
	(c) The annual winter fuel payment estimated to be paid in winter 2020-21 to a man or woman, aged 56 in 2011 under the current legislation is £200. Where more than one qualifying person lives in the household, a shared rate of £100 would be payable.

State Retirement Pensions: Age

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what information his Department holds for benchmarking purposes on the experience of other countries who have increased their pension age.

Steve Webb: Information on other countries which already have a State Pension age of 66, or will have done so before the UK's current legislated timetable, is in the Government's White Paper 'A sustainable State Pension: when the State Pension age will increase to 66'.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of limiting increases in women's state pension ages to a maximum of 12 months in addition to the timetable set by the Pensions Act 2005 in each financial year to 2015-16.

Steve Webb: Women's state pension age is already increasing from 60 to 65 by 2020 under the Pensions Act 1995. Under the Pensions Act 2007, the state pension age for both men and women is due to increase to 66 between 2024 and 2026, followed by two further increases at 10-year intervals.
	As the proposed changes to women's state pension age contained in the Pensions Bill do not start to take effect until April 2016, there can be no additional cost to the public purse in each financial year to 2015-16.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of retaining the existing state pension age for women to determine the age of eligibility for pension credit in each financial year to 2015-16.

Steve Webb: The qualifying age for pension credit is already increasing from 60 to 65 by 2020 along with the existing women's state pension age under the Pensions Act 1995. It is currently around 60 and three months.
	The cost of retaining the current women's state pension age (around 60 and three months) as the qualifying age for pension credit is in the table:
	
		
			  Increase in spend on pension credit 
			   £ million (2010-11 prices) 
			 2011-12 69.1 
			 2012-13 212.7 
			 2013-14 359.7 
			 2014-15 506.0 
			 2015-16 649.5 
			 Total 1,797.0

Voluntary Work and Charitable Donations

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department has a policy to encourage its employees to  (a) volunteer and  (b) donate via payroll giving.

Chris Grayling: The information is as follows:
	 Volunteering
	The Department is very proud of its commitment to volunteering. Staff are consistently encouraged to engage in their community. The Department has been running its volunteering scheme-Community 5,000-for around four years. It has recently doubled its commitment by encouraging staff to sign up to 10,000 volunteering days a year. The Department's senior management are leading the way actively taking part and encouraging others to join in.
	For many years, the Department has also granted a set amount of paid leave for staff to serve as magistrates and school governors. Many staff take up this opportunity.
	 Donations via payroll giving
	DWP operates a flexible payroll giving scheme which provides the opportunity for all employees to give regularly on a tax-free basis to charities and good causes of their choice.
	Employees can give money on a regular basis to a charity, or charities by tax-free deductions from their pay. The donations are made from gross pay. Employees may contribute to a maximum of four registered charities (or other organisations registered as charitable by HM Revenue and Customs). They have the option to make monthly donations or a one-off deduction. The minimum donation for both is £12.00 per annum and there is no maximum limit.

Crime Levels

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of trends in the levels of crime recorded by the British Crime Survey since 1997.

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of trends in the levels of crime recorded by the British Crime Survey since 1997.

Nick Herbert: The two main measures of crime-the British Crime Survey and police recorded crime-provide either a partial or confusing picture of trends in crime since 1997. That is why I have asked the National Statistician to lead an independent review of how they are produced and we await her report later in the year.
	This Government believe that it is crucial for the public to have the information they need to hold local services to account. The new police.uk website gives communities access to monthly street level crime and antisocial behaviour data-in line with our commitment to greater transparency across public services.

Antisocial Behaviour

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to publish the outcome of the Government's review of antisocial behaviour powers.

James Brokenshire: We published a consultation document which outlined the findings of the review of antisocial behaviour powers on 7 February 2011.
	Our review of the current tools and powers found that they are bureaucratic and do not work effectively. For example, the most recent statistics on ASBOs showed that 56% have been breached; many more than once.

Police Services

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what definition of the term front line her Department uses in relation to police services.

Nick Herbert: Frontline officers and staff are generally those directly involved in the public crime fighting face of the force. This includes neighbourhood policing, response policing and less visible functions such as criminal investigation.

Injuries

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) physical assaults,  (b) verbal assaults,  (c) injuries and  (d) serious injuries have been reported by (i) Metropolitan police force officers, (ii) Nottinghamshire police force officers and (iii) all police officers in England and Wales in each year since 1997.

Nick Herbert: Information on verbal assaults is not available centrally. The offence classification of 'Assault on a constable' was added to the Police Recorded Crime series from 1 April 1998, however the type of assault cannot be separately identified as the data collected are on an aggregate basis and does not cover assaults with injury.
	Separate data on the numbers of police officers on duty who were assaulted and resulting injury for Metropolitan police, Nottinghamshire, and the total for the 43 police forces in England and Wales from 2005-06 to 2007-08 and 2008-09 to 2009-10 are provided in tables A and B respectively. Police officer assault numbers for 2004-05 and previous periods were published by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) and can be seen in the HMIC annual report, available in the Library of the House.
	
		
			  Table A: Assaults( 1)  on police officers on duty, 2005-06 to 2007-08 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			  Police force area  Fatal injury  Serious injury  Minor or no injury  Fatal injury  Serious injury  Minor or no injury  Fatal injury  Serious injury  Minor or no injury 
			 Metropolitan police 0 228 2,168 0 237 2,060 0 210 1,912 
			 Nottinghamshire 0 2 221 0 3 221 0 1 168 
			 England and Wales total(2,3) 3 423 11,592 0 506 10,993 1 502 10,890 
			 (1) Provisional data collated on behalf of HMIC. Serious assaults are those for which the charge would be under sections 18 and 20 of the offences Against the Person Act 1861. Other assaults include those with minor or no injury. Recording practices may vary over time and between forces. (2) Cleveland were not able to provide data for 2005-06. Cumbria were not able to provide data for 2006-07 and 2007-08, North Yorkshire and South Wales were not able to provide data for 2005-06 to 2007-08 (3) Derbyshire in all years and Devon and Cornwall in 2005-06 only were not able to separately identify the degree of assault. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B: Assaults( 1)  on police officers on duty, 2008-09 to 2009-10 
			   2008-09  2009-10 
			  Police force area  Fatal injury  Serious injury  Minor or no injury  Fatal injury  Serious injury  Minor or no injury 
			 Metropolitan police 0 179 1,941 0 177 1,720 
			 Nottinghamshire 0 0 177 0 0 110 
			 England and Wales total(2,3,4) 1 439 9,882 0 381 7,794 
			 (1) Provisional data collated on behalf of HMIC. Serious assaults are those for which the charge would be under sections 18 and 20 of the offences Against the Person Act 1861. Other assaults include those with minor or no injury. Recording practices may vary over time and between forces (2) Data on 'minor or no injury' for Cleveland were not available for 2008-09. (3) Cumbria and North Yorkshire were not able to provide data for 2008-09. (4) Cheshire, Gloucestershire, Greater Manchester, Hampshire and North Yorkshire were not able to provide data for 2009-10.

Anti-Terrorism Control Orders

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she plans to publish draft legislation and guidance on terrorist protection and investigation measures prior to seeking parliamentary approval for the extension of arrangements for control orders.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 4 March 2011
	 We will introduce the legislation as soon as possible. It was not practical to introduce the Bill before the debates on renewal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005.

Crime: Victims

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many people in England were a victim of crime in each year from 1997 to 2010;
	(2)  how many people in England were a victim of serious crime in each year from 1997 to 2010.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 28 February 2011
	There are two main sources of official statistics on crime in England and Wales: police recorded crime and the British Crime Survey (BCS).
	The BCS provides an estimate of the number of crimes where the victim was an adult resident in households and published figures are available for England and Wales on trends since 1997 in the annual statistical bulletin "Crime in England and Wales 2009/10" (Tables 2.01 and 2.02), a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library. However, the main BCS crime count does not include all crimes experienced by victims resident in households, with homicide and sexual offences notable omissions. In addition, child victims and other victims not resident in households have previously been excluded from the survey.
	The police recorded crime series covers all crimes reported to the police but is restricted to the subset of crimes that are notifiable and has been affected by changes in levels of public reporting, police recording practices and also policing activity. Published figures are available for England and Wales on trends since 1997 in the annual statistical bulletin "Crime in England and Wales 2009/10" (Table 2.04).
	The annual statistical bulletin provides detailed breakdowns of crimes by offence types but there is not an official classification of "serious crime".

Crimes of Violence: Women

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Government is taking to tackle violence against women and girls.

Lynne Featherstone: The ambition of this Government is to end all forms of violence against women and girls. 'Call to End Violence Against Women and Girls', published in November 2010, sets out the Government's guiding principles in this area over the spending review period, including a commitment from the Home Office to provide £28 million of funding for specialist services.
	A detailed set of supporting actions together with a full response to Baroness Stern's review into the way rape complaints are handled by public authorities will be published on International Women's Day, on 8 March.

Departmental Food

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she expects her Department to meet the Government's commitment to source food that meets British or equivalent standards of production.

Damian Green: The Home Office do not contract directly for food supplies but procure catering services through wider FM or operating service contracts. We have as part of Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) led initiatives in this respect contacted the relevant suppliers and have received some initial responses indicating that the proportion of food already procured that meets British standards is in the region of 70% to 100%. However, as this does not cover all the suppliers or all food groups, we will be working with the suppliers to continue to understand exactly what proportions do meet British production standards and what potential there is to increase this percentage.
	The Home office will be contributing to the DEFRA led report on this matter which is planned for June 2011.

Departmental Public Bodies

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what expenditure  (a) her Department and  (b) each public body sponsored by her Department incurred on engaging external audit services in each of the last three years; and to which service providers such payments were made in each year.

Damian Green: The external audit fee costs recorded in the published annual Home Office Resource Accounts were:
	
		
			  £000 
			   Financial year 
			   2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			  (a) Home Office and agencies 911.0 979.0 1,064.0 
			 
			  (b) NDPBs
			 IPCC 38.0 41.0 45.0 
			 ISA 10.0 30.0 40.0 
			 NPIA 180.0 155.0 162.0 
			 OISC 17.0 22.0 27.0 
			 SIA 27.5 31.0 46.0 
			 SOCA 211.0 142.0 153.0 
			 
			 Home Office, agencies and NDPBs consolidated 1,394.5 1,400.0 1,537.0 
		
	
	The only supplier of external audit services to the Home Office, Home Office agencies, and Home Office non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) is National Audit Office (NAO).
	It should be noted that:
	NDPBs make near-cash/non-ringfence payments to NAO for their external audit services.
	The Home Office and agencies record a notional (ringfence/non-cash cost) in their accounts for external audit fee costs.

Detention Centres

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the time taken in transferring immigrants diagnosed with a mental illness from detention centres to appropriate healthcare settings; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce the time taken in such transfers.

Damian Green: All detainees have access to secondary health care services, including mental health provision. Responsibility for providing secondary health care treatment for immigration detainees rests with primary care trusts, including the hospitalisation of those with acute mental health illness. There have on occasion been unacceptable delays in such detainees being provided with a bed, and the UK Border Agency has therefore been working with the Department of Health and Ministry of Justice's Mental Health Unit to refine processes so that primary care trusts deliver treatment promptly.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people who were granted settlement in 2010 initially entered the UK on student visas.

Damian Green: holding answer 2 March 2011
	 The UK Border Agency published research entitled "The Migrant Journey" in September 2010, which provides a breakdown of those granted settlement in 2009 by their original route of entry. The report is available in the Library of the House.
	The UK Border Agency is currently planning to update the data in this report, once the data has been finalised, the relevant datasets combined and checked, and the analysis undertaken. The updated statistics for 2010 will be made available later this year once this work has been carried out.

Homicide

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the homicide rate was in each of the last 10 years.

Nick Herbert: Available information is from the Homicide Index as at 28 September 2010. It relates to offences currently recorded as homicide in England and Wales and was published in table 1.01 of the latest homicide chapter, which is available online at:
	http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs11/hosb0111.pdf
	The following table shows the number of homicides per million population for each year in the period 2000-01 to 2009-10. Data are shown according to the year in which offences were initially recorded as homicide; this is not necessarily the year in which the offence took place or the year in which any court decision was made. Data for 2010-11 are scheduled to be published in January 2012.
	
		
			  Rate of currently recorded homicides( 1) : 2000-01 to 2009-10( 2) -England and Wales, recorded crime 
			  Offences per million population 
			  Year( 2)  Number 
			 2001-02 15.2 
			 2002-03(3) 17.9 
			 2003-04 14.6 
			 2004-05 14.7 
			 2005-06 13.3 
			 2006-07 13.3 
			 2007-08 13.8 
			 2008-09 11.8 
			 2009-10 11.3 
			 (1) As at 28 September 2010; figures are subject to revision as cases are dealt with by the police and by the courts, or as further information becomes available. (2) Data are shown according to the year in which offences were initially recorded as homicide. This is not necessarily the year in which the offence took place, or the year in which any court decision was made. (3) Calculation includes 172 victims of Dr Harold Shipman.

Human Trafficking

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to announce the Government's strategy on human trafficking; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: holding answer 4 March 2011
	 Combating human trafficking is a key priority for the Government. We are committed to tackling organised crime groups which profit from this human misery and to protecting victims. We intend to publish our new strategy on human trafficking in the spring.

Illegal Immigrants: Employment

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many civil penalties have been imposed on employers for employing illegal workers since the introduction of the provision; and how much was  (a) levied and  (b) collected in each quarter since the introduction of the provision.

Damian Green: holding answer 3 March 2011
	Since the introduction of the illegal working civil penalty regime on 29 February 2008 to 31 January 2011, a total of 5,661 notices of liability for a civil penalty have been issued to employers.
	The following table shows the amounts levied and collected in each quarter since the first penalty was issued in May 2008 under Section 15 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.
	
		
			  £ 
			  Quarter  Amount levied  Amount collected 
			  2008   
			 April to June 3.44 million 15,000 
			 July to September 4.70 million 322,000 
			 October to December 3.14 million 508,000 
			
			  2009   
			 January to March 5.43 million 465,000 
			 April to June 4.46 million 649,000 
			 July to September 8.60 million 907,000 
			 October to December 4.37 million 1.22 million 
			
			  2010   
			 January to March 5.80 million 1.46 million 
			 April to June 5.47 million 1.61 million 
			 July to September 4.47 million 1.70 million 
			 October to December 3.20 million 1.80 million 
			  Note:  This data is derived from local management information and is therefore provisional and subject to change. It is important to note that the amount levied does not represent the recoverable value of illegal working civil penalties debt, since civil penalties may be reduced, cancelled or increased after consideration of objections submitted to the CPCT and reduced or cancelled after consideration of Appeals submitted to the county courts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and the Sheriff's Courts in Scotland.

Immigration: Heathrow Airport

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how long on average immigration queuing times for  (a) EU and  (b) non-EU nationals were at Heathrow airport in each of the last 12 months; what targets have been set for such queuing times; how frequently these targets have not been met in the latest period for which figures are available; and if she will take steps to publish regular information on queuing times for immigration.

Damian Green: holding answer 3 March 2011
	 The national target set out in the UK Border Agency business plan for passenger clearance is to clear 95% of European economic area (EEA) passengers within 25 minutes and 95% of non-EEA passengers within 45 minutes. The performance against those targets for Heathrow over the last 12 months is set out in the following table:
	
		
			   Percentage of EEA queues within target waiting time  Percentage of non-EEA queues within target waiting time 
			 February 2010 100.0 99.3 
			 March 2010 99.9 98.8 
			 April 2010 99.7 96.7 
			 May 2010 99.9 98.5 
			 June 2010 99.5 94.6 
			 July 2010 99.2 91.3 
			 August 2010 99.5 97.3 
			 September 2010 99.3 87.4 
			 October 2010 99.5 96.1 
			 November 2010 99.4 97.1 
			 December 2010 99.5 96.1 
			 January 2011 99.4 95.2 
		
	
	The monthly performance target was not met for non EEA passengers on three occasions over the 12 month period.
	Performance against passenger clearance targets will be published at a national level from April 2011 onwards as part of the Government's Transparency Framework.

Operation Viper

Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has for the future funding arrangements for Operation Viper.

Nick Herbert: We plan to set aside specific grant funding to ensure that the collaborative response to organised crime is maintained throughout England and Wales. A decision will be made shortly on how the funding allocated for this purpose will be disbursed.

Police: Finance

Conor Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to revise the funding formula for grants to police authorities; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: The Department for Communities and Local Government led on an overarching consultation during the summer of 2010 on technical improvements to the means by which funding is allocated to all local authorities. This included the police allocation formula (PAF), which is used to allocate funding to police authorities.
	All police authorities, forces and policing partners were able to submit representations setting out their views on the proposed changes. Home Office Ministers took into consideration all representations made as part of this consultation, as well as recommendations from the police allocation formula working group. They decided to make three technical changes to the formula:
	Rolling Rule 2 Grant, the Crime Fighting Fund and the Basic Command Unit Fund into Police Main Grant;
	Changing the measurement of bar density;
	Using updated Activity Based Costing (ABC) data
	There are currently no plans to review the formula further.

Police: Length of Service

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers in each police force had served 30 or more years as of 1 January 2011.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 28 February 2011
	 The available data are provided in the table which shows the number of police officers in each police force area with 30 years service or more, as at 31 March 2010. The length of service for police officers for 2011 is not yet available.
	
		
			  Police  officers in each  police  force area with 30 years service or more on 31 March 2010( 1) 
			   Number 
			 Avon and Somerset 47 
			 Bedfordshire 26 
			 British Transport police 244 
			 Cambridgeshire 16 
			 Cheshire (2)- 
			 Cleveland 60 
			 Cumbria 17 
			 Derbyshire 67 
			 Devon and Cornwall 52 
			 Dorset 20 
			 Durham 36 
			 Dyfed-Powys 24 
			 Essex 79 
			 Gloucestershire 11 
			 Greater Manchester 64 
			 Gwent 15 
			 Hampshire 72 
			 Hertfordshire 40 
			 Humberside 26 
			 Kent 78 
			 Lancashire 50 
			 Leicestershire 34 
			 Lincolnshire 16 
			 London, City of 31 
			 Merseyside 122 
			 Metropolitan police 1,154 
			 Norfolk 7 
			 Northamptonshire 17 
			 Northumbria 34 
			 North Wales 21 
			 North Yorkshire 12 
			 Nottinghamshire 57 
			 South Wales 53 
			 South Yorkshire 20 
			 Staffordshire 40 
			 Suffolk 13 
			 Surrey 35 
			 Sussex 41 
			 Thames Valley 64 
			 Warwickshire 11 
			 West Mercia 81 
			 West Midlands 198 
			 West Yorkshire 126 
			 Wiltshire 29 
			 Total 3,260 
			 (1 )This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. (2) Cheshire is unable to provide length of service figures.

Police: Public Order

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to produce standard national guidelines on policing public order events.

Nick Herbert: The Association of Chief Police Officers published updated guidance on public order policing in December 2010. The Government are currently considering the Policing Public Order Report published by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in February 2011.

Sponsors

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many regulations sponsored by her Department have been  (a) introduced since 18 November 2010 and  (b) revoked since 2 February 2011.

Nick Herbert: The following statutory instruments in the form of regulations have been made by the Department on or after 18 November 2010.
	
		
			  S.I. No.  S.I. Title  Made date 
			 2010 No. 2807 The Immigration and Nationality (Fees) (No. 2) Regulations 2010 21 November 2010 
			 2010 No. 2826 The Police Authority (Amendment No. 2) Regulations 2010 24 November 2010 
			 2010 No. 2851 The Licensing Act 2003 (Premises licences and permitted temporary activities) (Forms and notices) (Amendment) Regulations 2010 29 November 2010 
			 2010 No. 2958 The Immigration (Biometric Registration) (Amendment) Regulations 2010 13 December 2010 
			 2010 No. 3018 The Private Security Industry Act 2001 (Exemption) (Aviation Security) Regulations 2010 20 December 2010 
			 2010 No. 3030 The Police Authority (Amendment No. 3) Regulations 2010 21 December 2010 
			 2011 No. 230 The Police Federation (Amendment) Regulations 2011 4 February 2011 
			 2011 No. 300 The Police Act 1996 (Equipment) Regulations 2011 9 February 2011 
			 2011 No. 448 The Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) (England, Wales and Scotland) Regulations 2011 18 February 2011 
			 2011 No. 544 The Immigration (Accession and Worker Registration) (Revocation, Savings and Consequential Provisions) Regulations 2011 24 February 2011 
		
	
	The following statutory instruments in the form of regulations are revoked by the Department since 2 February. None of the revocations are yet in force.
	
		
			  (1) Regulations revoked  (2) References  (3) Extent of revocation  (4) Revoking instrument 
			 The Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) (England, Wales and Scotland) Regulations 2010 S.I 2010/1144 Regulation 3(a) S.I 2011/544 
			 
			 The Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 S.I. 2006/1003 Paragraph 7 of Schedule 5 S.I 2011/544 
			 
			 The Accession (Immigration and Worker Authorisation) Regulations 2006 S.I. 2006/3317 Paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 S.I 2011/544 
			 
			 The Accession (Immigration and Worker Authorisation) (Amendment) Regulations 2007 S.I. 2007/475 Regulation 3 S.I 2011/544 
			 
			 The Accession (Immigration and Worker Registration) (Amendment) Regulations 2007 S.I. 2007/928 The whole Regulations S.I 2011/544 
			 
			 The Accession (Worker Authorisation and Worker Registration) (Amendment) Regulations 2007 S.I. 2007/3012 Regulation 3 S.I 2011/544 
			 
			 The Accession (Immigration and Worker Registration) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 S.I. 2009/892 The whole Regulations S.I 2011/544 
			 
			 The Accession (Worker Authorisation and Worker Registration) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 S.I. 2009/2426 Regulation 3 S.I 2011/544

Telecommunications: Databases

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent progress she has made on the Intercept Modernisation Programme; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: The Interception Modernisation Programme was a programme under the last Government. As made clear in the strategic defence and security review, the Government will continue to build on an existing programme of work to preserve the ability of the law enforcement, security and intelligence agencies to obtain communications data and to intercept communications within the appropriate legal framework. We will legislate to ensure this is compatible with the Government's approach to civil liberties and use of communications capabilities. As set out in the Home Office's structural reform plan, details of this legislation will be announced in Parliament in due course.

Terrorism: Biological Weapons

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what recent reports she has received on the development of biological weapons by al-Qaeda in Afghanistan; and if she will make a statement on the Government's preparedness for a biological attack;
	(2)  what measures are in place to respond to a biological attack by international terrorists; and whether such measures include the stockpiling of vaccines;
	(3)  what types of biological terrorist threat she has assessed as posing the greatest risk to the UK;
	(4)  whether emergency service personnel are routinely vaccinated against potential biological terrorist threats;
	(5)  what her policy is on the vaccination of emergency services personnel as part of the preparedness plans for the London 2012 Olympics.

Nick Herbert: Reports on development of biological weapons by al-Qaeda in Afghanistan would be classified. The Home Office works across Government to examine all available information and intelligence. The risk that different types of biological terrorist threats pose to the UK and the response that is appropriate to those risks is regularly reviewed and re-assessed.
	The Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act (ATCSA) 2001, Part 7, legislates the security of dangerous substances that may be targeted or used by terrorists and covers biological agents which pose the greatest risk to the UK. Schedule 5 of the Act lists the biological pathogens and toxins to which the provisions of Part 7 apply. This covers both human and animal pathogens and not only the wild-type or 'intact' micro- organisms and toxins, but also genetic sequences derived from or coding for such substances. Selection of materials has been dependent upon a number of factors and is undertaken by a team of government and academic experts.
	Over the past six years, the UK has built up capability to prepare for a CBRN terrorist attack. Initial programmes are largely complete, however we are currently undergoing a programme of work to review and potentially augment and improve this capability.
	A wide range of possible incidents or attacks has been considered. Following this process, the UK Health Departments have established an appropriate stockpile of vaccines, medical countermeasures and specialist equipment to be used to protect and treat the public. For reasons of national security, it would be inappropriate to specify what particular countermeasures are held and where they are located.
	Government have taken steps to protect emergency service personnel against such threats. A cohort of frontline health workers has been vaccinated to deal with any initial suspected or confirmed cases of smallpox. No additional plans are in place specifically in response to the impending London 2012 Olympics, although risks are regularly reviewed based in part on the threat level in the national risk assessment (NRA).
	There is no current plan to make a statement on these issues due to the classified nature of much of the information in this area.

Third Sector

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what account she has taken of the Compact between the Government and Civil Society in policy development.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office considers the role of the Compact to be central to the relationship between the Department and civil society organisations. We strive to ensure that Compact principles are firmly embedded within Home Office policy development, not only when engaging with our stakeholders, but also in exemplifying better financial management of grants. A senior Home Office official has been identified to act as 'Compact Champion' for my Department. This role extends beyond the core Home Office to its agencies and other related statutory partners and we are keen to ensure steps are taken, at key opportunities to reinforce Compact compliance issues with those partners.